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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. current — electric
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. pop — soda
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. current — of water
  7. bark — to shout
  8. stock — shares
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. pop — to visit
  12. branch — a division
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. pop — music
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. current — happening now
  18. cold — an illness
  19. stock — goods
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. cold — not warm
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. kick — a thrill

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com